Views from the Choir Loft

1951 Solemn Pontifical Field Mass • With 100-Voice “Palestrina Cathedral Choir”

Jeff Ostrowski · July 14, 2015

By way of a wonderful Polish blog, we discover this interesting photo:

506 Schlarman Indian Chief

Here’s the background:

N OCTOBER 14, 1951, about 6,500 people gathered at the foot of Starved Rock, to commemorate Jesuit missionary Fr. Marquette, near Utica where he offered the first Mass in Illinois in 1675. Also present was the 23-member Menominee Indian brass band of northern Wisconsin. Solemn Pontifical Field Mass was celebrated by all the Bishops of Illinois and numerous monsignori, and sung by the 100-voice Palestrina Cathedral Choir, supported by 500-voice choir from the diocesan Catholic high schools.

Among the attending dignitaries was also Cardinal Stritch of Chicago, US Senator Everett Dirksen, Congressman Noah Mason, Francois Briere, French Consul-General of Chicago, and Adlai Stevenson, Governor of Illinois. Following the field Mass, Payetanimah, a brave of the Menominee tribe in Wisconsin, made Archbishop Joseph H. Schlarman of Peoria an honorary Indian chief. He presented him with an Indian headdress and Indian title Weeskiew Pimmaniwew, which means “good manager and bountiful dispenser of goods.”

From what I can tell by a cursory reading of his biography, Bishop Schlarman seems to have been a solid and holy bishop. Schlarman also seems to have been close to one of my heroes—Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen—who was born in Peoria, Illinois:

508 Sheen Schlarman

507 Schlarman 1

I like where Schlarman says:

Monsignor Fulton J. Sheen has no superior, and perhaps no equal, in character, piety, and virtue at the Catholic University.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

Dr. Mahrt explains the ‘Spoken’ Propers

In 1970, the Church promulgated a new version of the Roman Missal. It goes by various names: Ordinary Form, Novus Ordo, MISSALE RECENS, and so on. If you examine the very first page, you’ll notice that Pope Saint Paul VI explains the meaning of the ‘Spoken Propers’ (which are for Masses without singing). A quote by Dr. William P. Mahrt is also included in that file. The SPOKEN PROPERS—used at Masses without music—are sometimes called The Adalbert Propers, because they were created in 1969 by Father Adalbert Franquesa Garrós, one of Hannibal Bugnini’s closest friends (according to Yves Chiron).

—Jeff Ostrowski

PDF • “Music List” (1st Sunday of Advent)

Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 30 November 2025, which is the 1st Sunday of Advent (Year A). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. The ENTRANCE CHANT is quite memorable, and the fauxbourdon setting of the COMMUNION is exquisite. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are available at the feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Music List” • Christ the King Sunday

Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 23 November 2025, which is the 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. In the 1970 Missal, this Sunday is known as: Domini Nostri Jesu Christi Universorum Regis (“Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe”). As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the magnificent feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Translations Approved for Liturgical Use”

According to the newsletter for USSCB’s Committee on Divine Worship dated September 1996, there are three (3) translations of the Bible which can be used in the sacred liturgy in the United States. You can read this information with your own eyes. It seems the USCCB and also Rome fully approved the so-called NRSV (“New Revised Standard Version”) on 13 November 1991 and 6 April 1992 but this permission was then withdrawn in 1994.

—Corpus Christi Watershed

Gospel Options for 2 November (“All Souls”)

We’ve been told some bishops are suppressing the TLM because of “unity.” But is unity truly found in the MISSALE RECENS? For instance, on All Souls (2 November), any of these Gospel readings may be chosen, for any reason (or for no reason at all). The same is true of the Propria Missæ and other readings—there are countless options in the ORDINARY FORM. In other words, no matter which OF parish you attend on 2 November, you’ll almost certainly hear different propers and readings, to say nothing of different ‘styles’ of music. Where is the “unity” in all this? Indeed, the Second Vatican Council solemnly declared: “Even in the liturgy, the Church has no wish to impose a rigid uniformity in matters which do not implicate the faith or the good of the whole community.”

—Corpus Christi Watershed

“Our Father” • Musical Setting?

Looking through a Roman Catholic Hymnal published in 1859 by Father Guido Maria Dreves (d. 1909), I stumbled upon this very beautiful tune (PDF file). I feel it would be absolutely perfect to set the “Our Father” in German to music. Thoughts?

—Jeff Ostrowski